Hog farms not regulated by environmental authorities must stop using leftovers as pig feed within a week, the Council of Agriculture (COA) said yesterday, adding that samples of another three pork products from China have tested positive for African swine fever after being seized by customs officials.
The council on Saturday said that it would not immediately ban the use of leftovers at all hog farms, but at yesterday’s third meeting of the Central Emergency Operation Center — which oversees measures to control the disease — said that it would restrict such operations.
Only farms on an Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) regulatory list would be allowed to continue feeding pigs leftovers, COA Acting Minister Chen Chi-chung (陳吉仲) said, adding that 357 farms were on the list.
Photo: CNA
The 1,155 hog farms that use leftovers but are not on the list must switch to commercial fodder, cease operations within a week or get EPA approval to use leftovers, COA Deputy Minister Huang Chin-cheng (黃金城) said.
Farms have to pass reviews of disinfection procedures for leftovers, as well as air and water pollution control facilities, before they can be placed on the list, EPA Bureau of Environmental Inspection Deputy Inspector-General Lin Jso-hsiang (林左祥) said, but adding that it is more difficult for smaller farms to pass the reviews.
The nation has about 7,230 hog farms and those using leftovers are mostly small-scale farms, Department of Animal Industry Deputy Director Wang Chung-shu (王忠恕) said.
Photo: Chiu Chih-jou, Taipei Times
Some farmers have planned a demonstration on Wednesday to protest the council’s disinclination to ban leftovers as pig feed, but the protest would be unnecessary, as the new rules would minimize the risk of transmission via leftovers, Huang said.
However, the council would continue to negotiate with the farmers, he said.
Meanwhile, three pork products from China seized at customs have tested positive for the African swine fever virus, bringing the number of such products to 10 since China reported its first infection in early August last year, he said.
The council on Dec. 18 increased fines for those found illegally importing pork products from areas affected by the disease to NT$200,000 (US$6,480) for first-time offenders and NT$1 million for repeat offenders, but customs officials had still intercepted 44 such products among 131 illegal meat imports as of Saturday, council data showed.
First-offense fines for non-pork meat products start from NT$10,000 if they are from areas without animal diseases and NT$30,000 if they are from areas with foot-and-mouth disease or bird flu.
Visitors of other nationalities, such as Vietnamese, have stopped trying to illegally import meat since the council increased the fines and boosted promotion of its policies, but Chinese visitors continue to do so, Huang said, adding that the trend is no longer attributable to insufficient information.
As cross-strait travel is expected to increase before and during the Lunar New Year holiday next month, the council would dispatch 20 more quarantine officials to ports in Kinmen County, as well as Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Kaohsiung International Airport, he said.
Meanwhile, a pig carcass found on Kinmen County’s Siaociou Islet (小坵島) on Friday yesterday tested negative for the disease, although another one found in the county on Monday last week tested positive, the council said.
Reports of dead animals on Taiwan proper have been increasing, but none have been confirmed to carry the virus, with some carcasses being dogs, it said.
POLITICAL AGENDA: Beijing’s cross-strait Mid-Autumn Festival events are part of a ‘cultural united front’ aimed at promoting unification with Taiwan, academics said Local authorities in China have been inviting Taiwanese to participate in cross-strait Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations centered around ideals of “family and nation,” a move Taiwanese academics said politicizes the holiday to promote the idea of “one family” across the Taiwan Strait. Sources said that China’s Fujian Provincial Government is organizing about 20 cross-strait-themed events in cities including Quanzhou, Nanping, Sanming and Zhangzhou. In Zhangzhou, a festival scheduled for Wednesday is to showcase Minnan-language songs and budaixi (布袋戲) glove puppetry to highlight cultural similarities between Taiwan and the region. Elsewhere, Jiangsu Province is hosting more than 10 similar celebrations in Taizhou, Changzhou, Suzhou,
COGNITIVE WARFARE: Chinese fishing boats transmitting fake identification signals are meant to test Taiwan’s responses to different kinds of perceived incursions, a report said Chinese vessels are transmitting fake signals in Taiwan’s waters as a form of cognitive warfare, testing Taipei’s responses to various types of incursions, a report by the Institute for the Study of War said on Friday. Several Chinese fishing vessels transmitted fake automatic identification system (AIS) signals in Taiwan’s waters last month, with one mimicking a Russian warship and another impersonating a Chinese law enforcement vessel, the report said. Citing data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence, the report said that throughout August and last month, the Chinese fishing boat Minshiyu 06718 (閩獅漁06718) sailed through the Taiwan Strait while intermittently transmitting its own AIS
The Republic of China (ROC) is celebrating its 114th Double Ten National Day today, featuring military parades and a variety of performances and speeches in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei. The Taiwan Taiko Association opened the celebrations with a 100-drummer performance, including young percussionists. As per tradition, an air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet flew over the Presidential Office as a part of the performance. The Honor Guards of the ROC and its marching band also heralded in a military parade. Students from Taichung's Shin Min High School then followed with a colorful performance using floral imagery to represent Taiwan's alternate name
CHINESE INFILTRATION: Medical logistics is a lifeline during wartime and the reported CCP links of a major logistics company present a national security threat, an expert said The government would bolster its security check system to prevent China from infiltrating the nation’s medical cold chain, a national security official said yesterday. The official, who wished to stay anonymous, made the remarks after the Chinese-language magazine Mirror Media (鏡周刊) reported that Pharma Logistics (嘉里醫藥物流) is in charge of the medical logistics of about half of the nation’s major hospitals, including National Taiwan University Hospital and Taipei Veterans General Hospital. The company’s parent, Kerry TJ Logistics Co (嘉里大榮物流), is associated with the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the
RSS